The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) often cites Texas county jails for overcrowding. Even before the latest Harris County Jail non-compliance report has been posted online, the jail’s alleged non-compliance with minimum jail standards due to overcrowding was in the news on September 8, 2022. Further information will be provided when it is made available on the TCJS website. In the meantime, a story about violence in Harris County jails was published on January 26, 2022, and it details conditions there, such as overcrowding.  

Overcrowding in Texas jails is seen in other non-compliance reports in the state. For instance, Leon County Jail in Centerville, Texas, was informed of non-compliance in connection with overcrowding in a July 20, 2022, letter from the current Executive Director of TCJS, Brandon S. Wood. The inspection that resulted in the non-compliance report was instigated by complaints of overcrowding.

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition released a lengthy report entitled Costly Confinement & Sensible Solutions: Jail Overcrowding in Texas. The report was endorsed by the Executive Director of TCJS at that time. Released in 2010, the report provides numerous strategies for reducing overcrowding. Little is said about the harm this problem causes, however. This series will cover some of the information in the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition report.

But what about the consequences of overcrowding suffered by inmates? The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) recently published an article about prison and jail overcrowding. The watchdog organization details the cruelties associated with overcapacity jails.

In this ongoing series, learn about the above-referenced varied standpoints of jail overcrowding.

Posts are provided on this website with the mission of helping municipal and county jail inmates. There is never an intention on this site of suggesting that wrongdoing has occurred on the part of individuals or institutions.

–Guest Contributor